Bank of America has caved in on its announced decision to charge most debit card users a $5 monthly fee. Chalk up one for Adam Smith, who explained 235 years ago how competition benefits consumers. Once it became clear none…
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The number of those who pay no U.S. tax is actually minuscule
(This column is part two in a two-part series. Part one, “Half don’t pay taxes is one misunderstood rubric,” discusses the common misunderstandings the public has about taxation.) In any given recent year, 40 percent to 50 percent of the…
‘Half don’t pay taxes’ is one misunderstood rubric
(This column is part one in a two-part series. Part two, “The number of those who pay no U.S. tax is actually miniscule,” discusses the common misunderstandings the public has about taxation.) It is hard to find an economic statistic…
If Cain’s tax is a value-added tax, then let’s call it that
Just as there are myriad complications in as simple a concept as taxing “income,” there are just as many if you want to tax “sales” or “business profits.” Herman Cain’s 9-9-9 plan may prove to be a flash in the…
Tax reform must define income
Definitions in tax policy are not always as simple as they seem. Michele Bachmann correctly observed that “the devil is in the details” of Herman Cain’s tax plan. However, this is true of any tax changes, not just Cain’s. Such…
Errors in economics coverage spread misunderstandings
Economic ignorance never dies. Seeing bad arguments repeated, again and again, even when correct information is widely available is the most disheartening thing about teaching economics. Two recent examples in the media show how misunderstandings and mistakes can worsen, rather…
Nobel Prize winners focused on expectations
Thomas Sargent and Christopher Sims did the work that earned them the Nobel Prize in economics in their years in Minnesota. But, like their former colleague Ed Prescott, who won in 2004, Sims and Sargent moved on to greener fields…
How do ideas at GOP debate play out? It’s mixed
In contrast to historical debates like those between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas in 1858, little in-depth exposition of ideas ever takes place in a modern U.S. campaign debate. However, Tuesday night’s debate in New Hampshire among Republican presidential contenders…
What is good for Wall Street is not necessarily good for our country or the world
What is good for Wall Street is not necessarily good for our country or the world. That is obvious to many people after the events since 2007, but it doesn’t keep Wall Streeters from making self-serving arguments about how society…
We oppose regulations – but we make exceptions here and there
Human nature is such that while people may oppose something in the abstract, they like specific instances of it. For example, polls show that many people disdain Congress as a whole but still like their representative. Similarly, many oppose government…